BYD launched its Blade battery in 2020.
Qilai Shen/Bloomberg
BYD
shares rose on Wednesday after the Chinese electric vehicle maker said it was preparing to supply batteries to Tesla.
“We are good friends with Elon Musk and we are preparing to supply batteries to Tesla very soon,” BYD’s executive vice president Lian Yubo said in an interview with China’s state-owned broadcaster CGTN. Musk is CEO of Tesla (TSLA).
Hong Kong-listed shares of BYD (Ticker: 1211.Hong Kong), which are up more than13% this year, rose 2.8% on Wednesday.
Shares in China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology, or CATL (300750.China), which is a key supplier of lithium-ion batteries to Tesla, among others, fell 0.2% to $460. Tesla stock was up 0.7% at 721.53.
BYD, which is backed by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway , launched its lithium iron phosphate (LFP) “Blade Batteries” in March 2020 for use in its own cars as well as working on plans to sell them to other auto makers, including Toyota (TM).
Write to Lina Saigol at [email protected]
